A/N: Chapter fourteen. Wow. I can't actually believe we've made it this far! It feels almost like I've always been writing this story, and I'm kind of sad it's going to be over soon… but sentiment aside. I am please to present to you (finally), the climax chapter! I hope it lives up to all your expectations!
Standing just around the corner from the door, Pit could hear the silence that fell over the room with his departure. He would have felt bad for ruining the moment, but he didn't have time to think about it; something else was going on. Something he knew wasn't right.
He took a shaky breath, leaning against the wall and ignoring the jolt when it scraped against the bone of his right wing. He sucked air into his lungs, starting to feel lightheaded.
What is going on?
He didn't know why he was suddenly feeling this way – he couldn't even concentrate enough to figure it out. All at once he felt chilled to the bone; and yet he could feel heat radiating off his skin. He was shaking; but felt sturdy enough to stand, hyperventilating; but relatively calm. Although he could tell he was about to lose it.
His heart pounding, he buried his head in his hands, shaking with the effort of remaining still and rational.
What is happening to me?
"I relieve you of your duties. You are no longer bound to be here…" The voice echoed still in his memories, and Pit's eyes flew open at the sound of it.
"Lady Palutena?" He climbed to his feet, all sense of disorientation gone. "My Lady?"
"Pit." Looking around, Pit realized that he was once more in the clouds, and like the last time his wings were completely gone. His right hand was healed, but he reminded himself that it was merely a vision before continuing.
"Where are you, my Lady?"
"Pit," He turned again, finding Palutena standing directly behind him, and he fell to one knee in a bow of reverence. "You are hurt." She said the same words she had said it last time, but this time in a tone of pity. The angel frowned slightly, unsure if he preferred this to the earlier, colder Palutena.
"I will recover, Lady." He said carefully, "I am not useless to you."
"I know." She seemed to be mulling it over. "But I have not use for you."
"But my Lady!" Pit nearly jumped to his feet, but checked himself just in time. "I beg you reconsider! Please I just–" A sudden tap on his shoulder cut him off, and he growled at it. Now was not the time. "Just give me one more chance!"
"Not yet." Palutena shook her head slowly, and began to fade from his vision, "Perhaps when you are ready…"
"I'm ready now!" This time Pit did jump to his feet, gritting his teeth as the unseen force behind him gave him a shake. "Leave me alone!" He shouted at it, racing towards his liege without thinking. "Lady Palutena!"
"PIT!" Someone screamed suddenly, and he jumped. He looked ahead, but the goddess had vanished from sight. Sinking to the ground, devastated, Pit didn't even bother to move when the clouds gave way beneath him and he began to fall once more…
"Okay, that's it." Samus growled suddenly, cutting into the silence of the lounge. "I'm outta here." Removing Pikachu from her shoulder, she pushed off the wall she'd been leaning on and stormed out the door before anyone could stop her.
Turning down the hall, she searched in both directions before discovering her goal, and upon doing so, gasped.
The young angel was shaking all over; his face was ashen and he stared at the ground, sightless. "Pit…?" The assassin leaned over him, her voice betraying her concern.
"You don't look so good…"
"Go away please." His voice sounded thin and frightened, and he didn't even glance up. Samus got an eerie feeling that he really wasn't there at all, but someplace else. Someplace far away.
She shook her head, strengthening her resolve. "Pit." She tapped him on the shoulder, none too gently, but he didn't respond. "Pit! PIT!" Suddenly he slumped against the wall, and Samus grabbed onto him, not knowing what else to do. She could feel his heart beating from where she crouched, and though she would never admit it, it was scaring her. "Pit, I need you to–!" She cut herself off, caught off guard when Pit stiffened in her arms.
"I… said…" he muttered, his eyes slowly focusing as she leaned over him. "Go AWAY!" Bucking suddenly, he kicked the assassin in the stomach, throwing her back before leaping to his feet. Caught off-guard and winded, Samus was unable to do anything but stare as he raced down the hallway for some unknown destination.
"Leave me alone!" he shouted over his shoulder, giving Samus a clear view of the delirium written on his face before he fled from her sight.
A low groan escaped her lips as Samus pushed herself to her knees, already feeling the bruise forming between her ribs. While normally she would have been infuriated at the cowardly attack, she felt nothing but horror and worry at what had just happened. Without realizing it, she had grown to like the kid, and the fear of what he could do right now twisted in her gut as she climbed to her feet and tripped back into the lounge.
"He what?" Kasey's eyes were big as plates as Samus recounted what had happened in the hall only minutes before, and Joe held up a hand.
"Not so loud," he said softly, glancing around the room. Though still a pale reflection of its earlier mood, the room had begun to come alive again, and already the video game had resumed and cake was being passed around. "We don't want to scare people."
"Well it's too late for that." Samus snorted, doing her best to hide her concern and uphold her image.
"Hmm?" Kasey glanced over at the assassin with a raised eyebrow, but Samus looked away and the doctor quickly moved on. "So then, what now?"
"We need to find Pit." Link chimed in, finally getting in on the conversation. He had woken up the moment his friend had moved from beside him, but had been too slow and groggy to prevent his departure. Now, standing between Red and Peach, who were also concerned and willing to help, he wished he'd been able to do more.
"Agreed." Red nodded his head. "It sounds to me like he's in rough shape…"
"Like my ribs." Samus added glaringly, but nobody paid her any mind.
"…and it's our job to find him and bring him back!" Peach said, determination written on her face.
"All right," Joe glanced at the four Brawlers, then Kasey, "but be careful. We don't know what's wrong with him, and anything could set him off."
"And don't let anyone know what we're doing. Just be stealthy about–" Before Kasey could even finish her sentence, Marth and Natasha were standing behind her. "Oh, hey guys." She laughed nervously, and Natasha blinked.
"What're you guys doing?" The young fan asked.
Peach shrugged quickly. "Planning a search party."
Kasey hit herself in the head with the palm of her hand. "Nice, Peach."
"…what?"
"Never mind." Link cut in again before things got too messy. "You two can help us. We have to spread out and find Pit!"
"Right." Red agreed, "Let's go!"
"Discreetly!" Joe added quickly. He watched then, holding back a sigh as all five of his companions burst out of the room at the same time, each taking off in a different direction.
"Well," Kassey said quietly after a moment, "at least they know what they're doing."
It was a beautiful evening. The night air was crisp and clear, and the moon formed a perfect glowing crescent high above the few remaining wisps of cloud. Bits of moonlight reflected off the flowers of the garden, casting a shimmery haze over the whole of the roof, as well as its sole habitant.
Had he been watching, it would have been a spectacle to behold. But Captain Falcon was not watching the sky. He was not watching the moon, the flowers, or anything at all for that matter. Sitting in a lawnchair under the canopy, Falcon had his head buried in his hands, doing his best to drown out the noises of the night, and the voices drifting up from the floor below.
He was in a terribly foul mood. He had spent the day trying to get himself prepared for the party that night, but had been unable to erase the feelings of guilt and sorrow he felt. He still felt like it was his fault what had happened – he knew he wouldn't be able look the angel in the eyes; maybe ever again.
So of course, he was entirely unprepared minutes later, when the very same came bursting through the doors onto the roof. Falcon jumped in his chair, startled as he recognized Pit, and then worried as he spotted the look on his face.
"Whoa, buddy!" Rising slowly as his heart pounded, the racer held his hands out in front of his body, not daring to make any sudden moves as he attempted a closer look at his friend. Pit's body was shaking violently, and he was panting something awful. His eyes were wild and unfocused, and his gaze flitted around like a distracted puppy dog as Falcon edged ever closer. "Pit?"
"G-go away," the angel whimpered softly, "I can do this on my own."
"Do… what?" Falcon repeated just as softly.
There was a long drawn out pause before Pit responded, turning his glazed eyes in the captain's general direction. "Fly, of course." His voice was soft, but Falcon could hear a tone of seriousness in it, as well as… something else. Something that he knew wasn't supposed to be there. Wait… did he just say… fly?
"Pit!" Falcon jumped forwards without thinking, and Pit tensed up. Realizing his mistake, Falcon froze and put his hands up again. "Pit, listen to me. You can't fly."
"Yes I can." Pit turned his gaze away from Falcon again, to the night sky. The atmosphere Falcon had neglected to notice mere minutes earlier was coming back to haunt him – casting a pale glow across his friend's face that made him seem almost possessed. Of course, Falcon didn't know if that was a possibility, but Pit certainly wasn't acting like himself… "I've always been able to fly."
"Not…" Falcon choked on the words, but recovered quickly, "Not anymore, kid." Pit's eyes flitted in his direction, but his face remained lifted skyward, and he spread his arms wide. The red cape he wore fell back, resting loosely against his wings and giving Falcon a clear view of the bandages wrapping his arm and wing.
"I can do this." Pit repeated again, stepping slowly towards the roof's guardrails, arms still raised. Falcon's heart threatened to pound its way out of his chest as he moved to intercept the angel, but Pit stepped around him as though he weren't even there. "I can do this." Frozen with fear, Falcon watched as Pit took small steps, each bringing him closer to what would surely be his doom. He continued to mutter the four words under his breath, repeating them like a mantra of sorts. "I can do this. I can do this. I can do this."
Stumbling, Falcon tried again to stop the angel, but found his legs had turned to jelly. He crumbled to the ground, tears welling up in his eyes. "Pit, don't!"
Pit didn't even turn, so caught up in his own world that Falcon wondered if he had even heard. "I can do this." He took another step. Another. Closer. Closer. Just a few more steps and he would be at the guardrail. Falcon tried to force his eyes down, away from this sight that held him frozen, captivated, but to no avail. His eyes were fixed on the red cloak slowly moving away from him, and his breath caught as it stopped.
"I can… do this." Pit took a deep breath, and climbed onto the guardrail itself. Standing slowly, he fought for balance, arms spread wide as he tottered back and forth.
Finally, he stood still, his weight spread evenly as he swayed, balanced perfectly between Heaven and Earth. His hand moved, and the red cloak came fluttering down from his shoulders, landing in a heap by the railing's base. Falcon's eyes followed the garment, fixated on the startling colour, then snapped back to his friend. Lit only by the moonlight, he could see Pit's eyes close, and then watched as he took yet another deep breath. And then his knees bent, and his wings spread, and Pit prepared to jump.
A/N: Please let me know what you think in a review; I'd love to hear from you! Oh, and as promised, the prologue to this story's companion, "The Art of WAR" is now posted. Feel free to check it out!